Born in Strasburg, Va., Joe Bauserman played his sophomore through senior high-school seasons for the renowned Lincoln program in Tallahassee, Fla., where he excelled at football and as a pitcher. Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates out of high school, he played in their farm system for three seasons before opting to give college football a try. At Ohio State, he was the backup to Terrelle Pryor in 2009 and 2010, and he assumed the starting job this season only to lose it to freshman Braxton Miller in game four.

Q -- As you stood there on senior day waiting to be introduced, what did you think the crowd reaction was going to be?

A -- I wasn’t sure, because you start thinking of the past, and I’ve thrown an incompletion again, and the whole place boos. But I think the fans appreciate that you’ve put your time in and you’ve tried to do the right things, regardless of what else you’ve done.

Q -- When your name was called, were you surprised to hear arguably the best applause of the day?

A -- It felt great. I was surprised, to be honest. I didn’t think I would get that big a reception. I am grateful for the Buckeye Nation giving me that. It was fun.

Q -- You had a big opener against Akron. What went right then and then what went so wrong the next couple of weeks?

A -- We put the time in for that Akron game, but it seemed like after that things just weren’t clicking. We had the pieces, we just couldn’t put them together.

Q -- How hard was it for you when Miller was named the starter for game four?

A -- It was tough. You don’t ever want to not play anymore, not be the starter. It took a lot out of me. I had some sleepless nights. But I supported Braxton, and I couldn’t sit there and pout. I had to go back to work, because I did get my name called a couple more times. The one time I did all right (against Michigan State). The other time (against Nebraska) I didn’t do so well, so …

Q -- Do you give yourself some credit for not packing it in altogether?

A -- The first couple of weeks after I got benched and I was sitting there thinking I could just throw in the towel or I could be the fifth-year senior, be the guy to help Braxton, who was young. He would come to the sideline and the coach might yell at him or something, and I would be there to give him confidence. To be a quarterback at this level you need as much confidence as you can get, and I tried to help him with that.

Q -- Did you ever see the Joe Bauserman passing chart that made the rounds on the Internet after your infamous performance in the last 11/2 quarters of the loss at Nebraska?

A -- No. I know how I did, and I know it didn’t go like anybody planned. My neighbors are bloggers, and they see all that stuff on the Internet, and they tell me about things like that. But I’m not going to sit there and waste my time dealing with stuff like that.

Q -- With today being your last game, what did you get most out of playing college football?

A -- Great memories and some friends for life. I will never forget these five years. Some thought I should have transferred, done this, done that, but that never really crossed my mind. I wanted to be a Buckeye. I love this place, and it will always be a part of me. The experiences made me a better person.

Q -- You were drafted by a major-league baseball team and played in the minors, and you started games as a major-college quarterback. Though things might not have worked out as you had hoped, how does it feel that you at least were able to give both a shot?

A -- I was just blessed to get the opportunities, and that’s all you can hope for. You think back on things maybe you could have done better, but I know I gave it my all and the cards just didn’t fall the way I wanted them to. But that’s life. You’re not going to get everything you ask for.

Q -- What do you move on to now?

A -- I’m pretty set on selling my house, moving to Colorado and start enjoying my biggest passions, snowboarding and hunting. I’m going to do some of the bucket-list stuff, try to get those things off the list.